Analysis of Δ-tetrahydrocannabinol in oral fluid samples using solid-phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

An analytical method using solid-phase extraction (SPE) and high-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS) has been developed and validated for the confirmation of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in oral fluid samples. Oral fluid was extracted using Bond Elut LRC-Certify solid-phase extraction columns (10 cm³, 300 mg) and elution performed with n-hexane/ethyl acetate. Quantitation made use of the selected ion-recording mode (SIR) using the most abundant characteristic ion [THC + H⁺], m/z 315.31 and the fragment ion, m/z 193.13 for confirmation, and m/z 318.00 for the protonated internal standard, [d₃-THC + H⁺]. The method proved to be precise for THC, in terms of both intra-day and inter-day analyses, with coefficients of variation less than 10%, and the calculated extraction efficiencies for THC ranged from 76 to 83%. Calibration standards spiked with THC between 2 and 100 ng/mL showed a linear relationship (r² = 0.999). The method presented was applied to the oral fluid samples taken from the volunteers during the largest music event in Portugal, named Rock in Rio-Lisboa. Oral fluid was collected from 40 persons by expectoration and with Salivette^®. In 55% of the samples obtained by expectorating, THC was detected with concentration ranges from 1033 to 6552 ng/mL and in 45% of cases THC was detected at concentrations between 51 and 937 ng/mL. However, using Salivette^® collection, 26 of the 40 cases had an undetectable THC.     

Explaining Support for Non-nationalist Parties in Post-conflict Societies in the Balkans

Parties willing to engage in cross-ethnic political cooperation are essential for the stability and democracy of ethnically divided post-conflict states. The investigation of voting in Macedonia and Bosnia, which are similarly small, impoverished, ethnically fragmented and threatened states that arose out of Yugoslavia, helps uncover factors that encourage voters to support parties willing to engage in cooperative multiethnic governance. Analysis of survey data suggests that supporters of the non-nationalist challengers in the first post-violence elections expressed both strong positive associations with the past communist system and clear negative assessments of the governing record of the incumbent nationalists, sentiments that were stronger among Macedonians than among Bosniaks. Data, however, call into question popular contentions that voters' support for non-nationalists is rooted in their social tolerance or engagement in civil society. The finding that Macedonian support for non-nationalist parties is partly due to negative voting combines with difficult domestic social and economic conditions, unfriendly neighbours and uncertain regional integration processes to suggest continuing challenges for Macedonia.     

The Corporatist Regime,Welfare State Employment,and Gender Pay Inequity

Mainstream economics conceptualizes wages as determined by market forces and reflecting productivity and investments in human capital made by individuals. These views, which have become taken-for-granted explanations of what wages are, hide the underlying dynamics of the gender pay gap and place responsibility on individuals instead of gendered social structures. This article proposes viewing gender pay inequity through a sociological lens, which implies acknowledging the complex societal dynamics and roles of institutions and actors in shaping wages. The Nordic welfare states are often considered women-friendly, providing female citizens with social policies and services that have enabled their extensive participation in paid employment. Simultaneously, the Finnish welfare state has relied heavily on inexpensive labour provided by women, thus actively contributing to the formation of a secondary female-dominated labour market. The secondary status of reproductive work conducted within the public sector has been further strengthened and institutionalized by the Finnish corporatist system via collective agreements. In policy-making, the central actors defend their vested interests through non-decision-making, limiting the scope of decision-making to non-threatening issues. This article discusses the dynamics of the Finnish corporatist regime, welfare-state employment, and the impact of both on gender pay equity in Finnish society.     

Does Training and Coaching Matter? An 18-Month Evaluation of a Community Supervision Model

During the last decade, several formalized approaches have been developed to improve the effectiveness of probation and parole by implementing evidence-based research into community supervision practices. A key component of these new approaches are the use of officer coaching sessions, which are designed to improve officer fidelity in the core correctional skill areas. This study explores the impact of an initial training and monthly coaching sessions in the Effective Practices in Community Supervision (EPICS) model on probation and parole officer use of core correctional skills. The results examine the average quarterly officer use of skills over an 18-month follow-up period based on training status (i.e., trained versus untrained officers) in the EPICS model. This study adds to the understanding of the role training and coaching may play in improving officer use of core correctional skills. Policy implications and recommendations for future research are also discussed.     

Pathway to resilience: hands and hearts for peasant livelihoods and fair relations between humans and nature

Abstract

Peasants and rural communities are on the front lines of most climate catastrophes taking place nowadays worldwide; at the same time, we have been the ones taking care of our common planet over generations. This article begins with a brief overview of the current situation of land use in the world today and links it to climate issues. It then describes some of the solutions to climate threats being negotiated between national governments and the private sector. It then highlights solutions that communities are already implementing and concludes with the reasons why systemic change is needed in order to achieve agrarian and climate justice.     

Illness as privilege: Hildegard von Bingen and the condition of mystic writing

Done into Dance: Isadora Duncan in America. By Ann Daly. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1995.

The Penguin Book of Women's Humor. Edited by Regina Barreca. New York: Penguin, 1996.     

Social Competence in Late Elementary School: Relationships to Parenting and Neighborhood Context

Despite evidence that neighborhoods confer both risk and resilience for youth development, the existing neighborhood research has a number of methodological limitations including lack of diversity in neighborhoods sampled and neighborhood characteristics assessed. The purpose of this study was to address these methodological limitations of existing research and to examine the relationship of neighborhood structural and social characteristics to family-level social processes and teacher-reported social competence during early adolescence. The study sample of 3,624 fifth graders (51?% girls) was ethnically diverse, including roughly even proportions of non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, and Hispanic youth. Neighborhood measures included economic disadvantage derived from the U.S. Census, physical and social disorder obtained by direct observation, and social capital from parental reports. Family-level social processes included parent reported family cohesion and youth reported maternal and paternal nurturance. We found that neighborhood factors significantly associated with youth social aggression and social competence but not social withdrawal, after controlling for individual demographic characteristics and parenting factors. There was limited evidence of moderation of family influences by neighborhood characteristics as well as the moderation of neighborhood effects by children’s gender. Neighborhood physical disorder was associated with increased social aggression among boys but with increased social withdrawal among girls. Implications of the study’s findings for research on neighborhoods and adolescent development and the development of preventive interventions are discussed.     

Public administration reform for Aboriginal affairs: An institutionalist analysis

Persistent underperformance of public policy and program implementation in Aboriginal affairs is widely recognised. We analysed the results of two case studies of attempted reforms in public administration of Aboriginal primary health care in the Northern Territory, using a framework based on the institutionalist and systemic racism literatures, with the aim of better understanding the sources of implementation failure. Implementation of the agreed reforms was unsuccessful. Contributing factors were as follows: strong recognition of the need for change was not sustained; the seeds of change, present in the form of alternative practices, were not built on; there was a notable absence of sustained political/bureaucratic authorisation; and, interacting with all of these, systemic racism had important consequences and implications. Our framework was useful for making sense of the results. It is clear that reforms in Aboriginal affairs will require government authorities to engage with organisations and communities. We conclude that there are four requirements for improved implementation success: clear recognition of the need for change in ‘business as usual’; sustainable commitment and authorisation; the building of alternative structures and methods to enable effective power sharing (consistent with the requirements of parliamentary democracy); and addressing the impact of systemic racism on decision-making, relationships, and risk management.